Automatic car register



Oct. 23, 1934. N E HUM ET AL 1,978,349

AUTOMATIC CAR REGISTER Filed Aug. 8, 1932 .lll/11111417.

lil/l Patented Oct. 23, 1934 UNITED STATES- PATENTOFFICE L. Fry, Kansas;` City, Mo., assignment seventyf five per `cent to said Humeand `in aventy-Iive f per cent to said Fry Application August 8, 1932,` Serial`N0..62'l,842y

e (C1. :m- 799)y y This inventionrelavtes to motor car registering apparatus of that 4class for use in the'car` entrancesffof public garages and parking stations, yand adapted for automatically counting the entering cars and displaying the aggregate number which have entered at any time inspection of the apparatus occurs, and` thus guards against forgetfulnessoroversight on the part of the attendant, and our Objectis to provide apparatus which is ofv simple, strong, durable and inexpensive construction, andwhich may be installed and maintained at small expense.

Afurther object issto produce apparatus responsive to operation by the front wheels and by the rear wheels of an entering car, involving the i .use of a platform requiring two depressions and reelevationsto cause thecounting mechanism to register once; andY which furthermore `is not responsive for registering purposes to noutgoing cars. With `the general objects named `in'"view and others as will hereinafter appear,y theinvention consists in certain novel and useful featureso'f construction and organization of parts as hereinafter described; and in order', that it maybe ,fully understood, reference'is to be had to the accompanying drawing, in which n `Figure l is a `broken plan view of an automatic car registering apparatusgembodying the invenltion y, l. Figure 2is also shows part of a pawlrand ratchet mechanism for effecting operation of any conventional type of register or counter, not shown.

` Figure is a vertical cross section on the line 11i-enr of Figure 2. f

Figure 4 is a vertical'section on the line IY-IV of Figure 2, eertainfeatures being omitted. Figure 5 is an enlarged cross section showing in `cooperative relation, certain control mechanism ,and the movable [platformand` push-rod thereof. In the'saiddrawing, lindicates anj'elongated lrectangular box of concrete or any othersuitable material. It may molded or set ina'trench so that its upper edge shall be approximately at the ground or floor level of the garagelor station; and it, of course, should be of length to ,substantially 'correspond with v the entrance Wayor opening through which cars must enter the garage or station. `At one endandto one side of theentrance way, the box may have a fixed top section 2,`the remainder of the box having a platform or cover y3, overwhich the cars must pass, the cover being jno'rmallly elevated so that it shall bewdepressed "twice with the passage of each car entering the .garage` or stationthe front wheels n depressing ity vertical longitudinal section, 'and once and the rear wheels, the second time; (To effect this result, the cover has a plurality of de` pending pins 4 tting in vertical pockets 5 of or contiguous to the'side'walls of the box and resting on lift-plates 6, in said pockets, thelift plates being secured slidingly by depending sleeves to Vertical rods 7. and resting onsprings 3 strong enough to instantly reelevate the cover 'when not sustaining a'substa-ntial part of the weight of the 'cargit being understood kthat the springs will be stiff enough to lprevent full depression of the cover by thesimultaneous passage of several men 'over it. The rods 7 are rigid with the bottom of the box.` l

f'lhekcover has 'a rigid depending pin 9, 'which normally "stands directly above and close to the 'free end of a' 1ev`erj10, disposed longitudinally wi'thinthe box, the lever being loosely fulcrumed 4pie'rilIZ Withinand in rigid relation to the box. :At oneend it extends loosely through a vertical guide i3,` and at suchend is connected to operate a counter or register to be operated as the lever is"y restored to normal position following each operation rthereof by downward movement of the platform, the restoration of the lever to normal positionbeing preferably effected bygravitative action as will hereinafter appear.

` A counting device of conventional rotary type ls disposedat a convenient point, preferably within'the garage building or the like, notshown, fromwh'ich entering and leaving cars'are under observation, Mechanism may .also be provided such as atime clock, whereby,` as the counter is operated; a ticket Will be automatically stamped and issued which the driver ofthe car is expected to secure, but ras ticket issuing mechanisms of lstandardized type, are conventional, no claim is` made .thereto and hence it is not illustrated or detailed? n Within the box is a control mechanism for automatically locking the lever against reverse action when operated by the depression of the platform `or cover by the imposition thereof ofthe front wheels of an incoming car, and for permitting the rlever to resume its initial position when the platyevery single like movement of the lever.

Referring now to the control mechanism, 14 is a/bracket within the box andcarried thereby is l a cross shaft capable of endwise movement but holds disk 18 pressed yieldingly toward the standard arm The bracket arm has a circular series of eight equi-distant openings 21 containing balls l 22 which normally engage segmental cavities 23--24 in disks 17 and 18, so that the force of the spring 19 must be overcome to .effect turning movement of disk 17. DiskV 17 has-a-circular.

series of eight equi-spaced pins -25 and from every alternate pin is pivotally suspended a dog 26, and pivotally pendent from the platforrnis a beveled push-rod 27 adapted each time the platform is depressed by an incoming car, to engage fa pin-` 25 and impart a one-eighth turn to disk- 17, the spring 19 yielding to permit such movement and reacting at its vend to relock the disk to disk 18 through the cooperative action of the balls and the cavities of the disks.

With the first and every alternate depression of the platform, the pin 9 presses the free end of lever 1 0 downward and the'push-rod 27 turns disk 17 onestep and disposes one of the dogs 26 above the lever to prevent reverse movement thereof as the platform rises when relieved of the weight of the car as the front wheels clear the platform, it being noted that the beveled part of the push-rod, in the rise of the platform, en-

,1 counters a pin 25 in its path and is swung aside thereby and then swings back over saidvpin for 'engagement therewith on the depression of the` platform as the rear wheels of the car roll upon it so that the platform shall, through the push-v rod,` impart a secondl step 'to said rwheeljwhich step withdraws the holding dog 26 from engagement with theleverand permits the latter toreturn to normal position.. 'Itis preferable that this 'action shall .occur through `the force ofgravity and'that thesame force shall operate the vcounting mechanism one step. j

As'shown, `one end of ther lever is pivotally connected tothe lower end :of a Vertical rod 28 ex- `mechanism and restore the lever to initial'pfosition. When the parts are so arranged, the depression of the platform depresses the free end of the lever, as 'hereinbefore explained,` and incidentally' imparts'upward'movement to the rod 28 so as to dispose it to effect operation of the counting mechanism when the lever 10 is nol longer locked by the intermittently operable disk 17.

To avoid.y operation of the lever by depression of the platform by 4an outgoing car, `the platform is adapted fo-r sufcient lateral movement as struck sidewise by the car wheels, to permit the .pin 9 and push rod l27, to descend without respectivelyy touching the lever and a pin 25, of the said disk 17. As the platform in normal position stands several inches above the ground sur- "face, it tends to move laterally when rsts'truc-k by the wheels of acar .(see Figure 3).,'but such lateral `movement occursionly when pressure is "appliedby'out-going cars, asc'leats 31 on the uriment imparted tothe platform by the lift springs.

To cushion and 'then reverse the'lateral move- .ment imparted to the platform by outgoing cars, pull cords 34 may run over fixed pulleys 35 and be lattached at their upper ends tothe platform rand carryl weights 36 at their lower ends, so that the weights will be lifted 'by lateral outward movement of the platform and instantly reverse such `movement when no longer opposed by the thrust or weight' of the car'and thereby position 4the platform `forproper registering operation 4by each p entering car.

vAs Ithe operation of various features has been explained in detail, no reca-pitulation of the general operation is deemed necessary, it being understood that we reserve the right to lall changes falling'within the principleV of yconstruction vand mode of operationinvolved within the spirit and scope ofthe :appended claims. f

Weclaim: f i

1. In an automatic car. register, ya box embedded in the ground, vspring-elevated lift-plates therein, a cover for the box slidingly supported vonand elevated by the lift-plates, yielding means to permit of lateral movement ,of the cover in one direction, relative tothe box and to reversel such lateral movement without interfering with downward movements of the 'coveruntil'arrested by the box and the reelevation of the `cover to initial position and 'means'depend'ing from the cover within the box and adapted'ftoengage one side wall thereof to limit` lateral Amovement of the cover in the direction which" it is `urged by said yielding means, f'

2. An automatic car register comprising a yieldinglyielevated element for successive depresjlsions bythe front and rear pairs of wheels of a motor vehicle as the latter enters a garage or the like, an element underlying the first-named elementfor depression` by the latter when depressed by the first pair of wheels of the `entering vehicle, and'movable'means yactuated by the depression of the platform by the first pai-r o'f 'car wheels, ltovrlock said .underlyingelement in its depressed position vuntil said locking meansA is unlocked by depression of the'first-na'med element by the second pair of Wheels ofthe entering vehicle.

3. An automatic car register comprising 'a yieldingly elevated element for successive depressions by the front and rear pair'sofwheels of a motor vehicle vas the 'latter enters a garage or thelike, an element underlying the rst-named 'element'for' depression' by the latter when depressed'iby the rstpair of Iwheels of v,the entering vehicle, -a rotatabledisk provided with a series vof eight equi-distant pins, `dogs'p'ivotally pendent from every lalternate pin of said series, one of said dogs being swung aside by the first downward movement imparted to the said underlying element, and then swinging back to""lock Isaid element against reverse operation, anda push-rod pivotally pendent from therst-narned element to 'apply downward pressure each time the latter ,is depressed by an entering car on one vof the disk `pins to turn the disk to dis-pose a locking dog in the path of sai-d underlying element to cooperate therewith asy described, the push-rod having a cam face for 'engagement with another of said pins to be pushed vaside thereby, as the first-` 'named' element is reelevated without :affectingI ico the position of the disk, and then swing back to normal position to be ready to turn the disk another step and unlock lthe said -underlying element, on the second depression of the first-named element by an entering Vehicle.

4. An automatic car register, comprising a normally yieldingly-elevated element for successive depressions by the -front and rear pairs of the depression thereof by the front wheels of an entering car, means to lock the lever in the position to which it is operated by said element when the latter is depressed by the front Wheels of an entering car, and means whereby the depression of said element by the rear wheels of an entering car, shall unlock said lever to permit it to return 'to its initial position.

5. An automatic car register, comprising a yieldingly-elevated platform for successive depressions by the front and rear pairs of wheels of a car as the latter passes over the platform in entering a parking place, an element for operation by the platform when depressed by the first pair of Wheels of an entering car,` and movable means actuated by the depression of the platform by the said first pair of wheels of the entering car to lock said underlying element in the position which it `attains when operated by the depression of` said platform by the first pair of Wheels of the entering car, and for releasing said underlying element when actuated by depression of the platform by the rear pair of wheels of the entering car.

6. An automatic car register, comprising a yieldingly-elevated platform for successive depressions by the front and rear pairs of Wheels of a car as the latter passes over the platform in entering a parking place, an element for operation by the platform when depressed by the first pair of wheels of an entering car, movable means actuated by the depressionof the platform by the said first pair of wheels `of the entering car to lock said underlying element in the position which it attains when operated by the depression of said platform by the rst pair of Wheels of the entering car, and for releasing said underlying` element when actuated by depression of the platform by the rear pair of Wheels of the entering car, a normally yieldingly-depressed slide rod to be raised by the element for operation by the platform when the latter is depressed by the front wheels of the entering car, and a counter mechanism actuated by depression of the said rod when the said locked element is released for return to normal position.

NORA E. HUME. GEORGE L. FRY. 

